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From now on your location will not always be shared on Facebook Messenger, a feature which was probably annoying for some users. But what’s more interesting is the fact that users can from now on share a map with their location using only this app. In addition you can find or share place although you are not in the area.
So far you Facebook friends could only see only which state or country you sent the message from. If you wanted to share your address you had to type it manually or use a different app to send images of a map. Head of Product of Facebook Messenger, Stan Chudnovsky., confessed that Facebook locations were indeed limiting.
With this update the app will receive location information about you only if you enable the location service from your phone. Neither does it collect location data in the background or asks for new permission to use your information. You can also disable location tracking on your smartphone.
The upgrade for location sharing is rolling out today for everybody using either Android or iOS. The blue arrow which constantly shares your coordinates will be replaced with a pin button placed near the ones for sending stickers, photos or money. If you tap it there will appear a map with your location. With one more tap you can send the map to your friends. This is an easier way to meet up with your friends especially if one of them does not know how to reach the meeting place.
You can even change the pin’s location on the map and select a meeting spot. Suggestions of nearby places such as local businesses are also available. Chudnovsky said that if you want to do the same thing with Google Maps it would take two app switches, seven taps and 150% frustration.
Google Chrome has an extension called “Marauders Map” which logs the location data send by friends in Messenger and it shows where people are. This is something very similar, but Facebook claims that they had been working on their Messenger update for the last three months when the Marauders Map, named after the Harry Potter series, did not exist.
Besides Facebook Messenger the social network giant manages other apps which enable you to share your location. The main such tools are Nearby Friends and Check In. you can also share your location using WhatsApp.
Image Source: Forbes
